About the Author
Image credit: Courtesy of Allen & Unwin.
Works by Janine Burke
Associated Works
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Birthdate
- 1952-03-02
- Gender
- female
- Nationality
- Australia
- Birthplace
- Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- Places of residence
- Florence, Italy
Paris, France - Education
- University of Melbourne
La Trobe University
Deakin University - Occupations
- art historian
biographer
novelist
curator
lecturer (Art History)
Members
Reviews
Author Janine Burke immediately lowers expectations with her first words in Nest: The Art of Birds: "I am a very amateur naturalist." She is trained as an art historian, and her unease at tackling a subject outside her area of expertise, though perhaps tangentially related, is evident throughout the book via sporadic apologies and self-deprecating remarks. I thought the opening statement endearing and appropriately honest, but the subsequent self-consciousness distracting.
That said, Burke is a fine writer and she clearly conveys her love of nature. But the premise of the book, that bird nests are art, is rather thin. Yes, bird nests show great craftsmanship (and in the case of the male bowerbird, remarkable decorative instincts), which indeed can be considered art. And from there, significant padding is required in its exposition to fill out this short book.
Though this is a lightweight work by any measure, there are some simple pleasures to be enjoyed within. Highlights are the discussion of the aforementioned male bowerbird and its elaborate bower meticulously designed to attract a mate; analysis of nest construction, preservation, and museum display; and her own personal observations of bird nests and behavior (much more impactful than most of the observations she relates second-hand). On the downside, the chapter on poetry and literature inspired by bird nests seems forced, and the point at which the author appears most uncomfortable.… (more)
That said, Burke is a fine writer and she clearly conveys her love of nature. But the premise of the book, that bird nests are art, is rather thin. Yes, bird nests show great craftsmanship (and in the case of the male bowerbird, remarkable decorative instincts), which indeed can be considered art. And from there, significant padding is required in its exposition to fill out this short book.
Though this is a lightweight work by any measure, there are some simple pleasures to be enjoyed within. Highlights are the discussion of the aforementioned male bowerbird and its elaborate bower meticulously designed to attract a mate; analysis of nest construction, preservation, and museum display; and her own personal observations of bird nests and behavior (much more impactful than most of the observations she relates second-hand). On the downside, the chapter on poetry and literature inspired by bird nests seems forced, and the point at which the author appears most uncomfortable.… (more)
Awards
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Associated Authors
Statistics
- Works
- 20
- Also by
- 3
- Members
- 329
- Popularity
- #72,116
- Rating
- 3.5
- Reviews
- 3
- ISBNs
- 46
- Languages
- 2
It's beautifully produced, comparable with books that come from the Folio Society. The hardback cover design by Pfisterer + Freeman is graced by gilt leaves superimposed over the bark of a gum tree; the end papers are eucalyptus green; each new chapter is designated by a full page colour background image of bark; and, typeset in Bembo 12/15pt, the papers feel soft and silky in the hand. It would make a beautiful gift, but you'd need to be strong-minded not to keep it for yourself.
Contrary to my expectations of a book about forests, the book begins in Elwood, a beachside suburb of Melbourne. I know it well because I used to live above the Turtle Café on the corner of Glenhuntly and Ormond Rds. (If interested, look here: the near turret was our sitting-room, the rear turret was the kitchen from which we could see the sea, and the left hand window was our bedroom. We loved the bustle of the street life below us, and only moved when The Offspring needed a garden to rampage around in.)
Despite development, Elwood remains green to this day:
The Yaluk-ut Weelam ('river people') of the Boonwurrug clans used to camp on the Point Ormond bluff which looks across to the You-Yangs near Geelong. When Thomas Clark painted it in c1860, (see here) much of Elwood was swampland and there was an abundance of ducks, eels, tortoises, frogs, fish, shellfish, kangaroos and emus to hunt and harvest.
The chapter goes on to record the leadership of Derrimut, who not only warned the infamous Batman that other Aboriginal clans were preparing to attack him and his men, he also tried to save Batman's son from drowning. By 1857 when the Boonwurring and the Woi Wurrung population had been reduced to only twenty-eight people, they had been moved on further down the bay to Mordialloc, from where they would be shunted onwards as settlement extended all over Port Phillip. Derrimut confronted William Thomas, the (so-called) Protector of the Aborigines of Port Phillip, and asked him why 'white man take away Mordialloc where black fellows always sit down?'
From sharing aspects of her local area's history and ambience, Burke goes on to write some of the best essays I've read this year. 'Women of the Banyan' is chastening reading... what begins with a Hindu religious rite under India's national tree the banyan, becomes a shocking exposé of appalling cruelty in modern India.
To read the rest of my review please visit https://anzlitlovers.com/2021/09/11/my-forests-travels-with-trees-by-janine-burk...… (more)